Andy Burnham risks setting a dangerous precedent if he signals that referendums can be rerun, a veteran of the 2014 battle to persuade Scots to stay in the UK has warned. Andrew Bowie, who is today Kemi Badenoch's Shadow Energy Secretary, says Mr Burnham should beware of the chaos he could unleash if he comes out in favour of a referendum on renewed EU membership.
He warns that arguing it is time for another public vote – just a decade after the historic 2016 referendum – would be "right out of the SNP's playbook".
Warning over 'Pandora's box'
"That is what they want to see," the 39-year-old told the Sunday Express in an interview. The West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine MP said he still thinks that advocates for splitting off from the UK "would lose another referendum on Scottish independence".
But the prospect of reopening the depth of division triggered by the 2014 vote horrifies this dad of one. He said: "People think the Brexit referendum was bad; they've seen nothing... It was vicious and vitriolic. Friends of mine were spat at in the streets… People were scared to put posters up in their windows in case they got bricks through them. That was the atmosphere in Scotland in 2014. We do not want to revisit that. We need to move on."
Stating that he does "not trust Andy Burnham", he warned that even suggesting another referendum might be possible is "just opening up this Pandora's box".
SNP record under fire
The SNP has led the Scottish Government since 2007 and Mr Bowie attacks its record: "We've got a Scottish education system that used to be the pride of the world crumbling, falling down the league tables."
It is time, he argues, for the Scottish Government to use its full suite of powers to improve the lives of the Scottish people.
"Get on and use the powers for the good of Scotland, right?" he said, adding: "There is so much that you can do with the powers that are held at Holyrood to make Scotland a much better place to live, work, and invest. They're not using them right now. That should be the priority of the SNP."
Conservative hopes after by-election win
Scottish Conservatives were hugely encouraged when the party won the Aberdeen South by-election in June. Mr Bowie said it was a demonstration of the Conservatives "at our best", focusing on the "economy and what people care about, which is how they're going to pay bills and what the job situation for them and their family [is], and giving a vision of hope and optimism for tomorrow".
He added: "We can do that across the country. We are the only party that's talking about a brighter tomorrow. We're the only party talking about growing the economy, creating jobs, giving business the incentive to invest and grow here in the UK and in Scotland… We need to remember the most important thing, as ever, is the economy and economic growth. And if we can show the Scottish people that we're able to deliver that at a UK level, then I think the Scottish people will, like other people around the UK, give us a second chance and vote for us."
